AVAILABLE 24 HOURS PER WEEK!Every Wednesday following Mass at 8:30 AM until 8:00 AM on Thursday morning.

Spend an hour or even just fifteen minutes with the Lord in humble adoration. Take some time out of your busy week to be in His presence. Lent is about deepening our love and devotion to Jesus, who died for us, rose for us, and has glorified us with him.

﻿Confession Resources﻿

﻿﻿Lenten Discipline﻿﻿

Abstinence

What is abstinence?Abstinence is the discipline of abstaining from eating meat.

When must I abstain?On Fridays of Lent, Ash Wednesday, and Good Friday. Traditionally ALL Fridays throughout the year are days of abstinence, however in the United States, Catholics are no longer obliged to abstain from meat outside of Fridays of Lent, although one IS obliged to substitute some other penance if not abstaining from meat.

Canon 1251 of the Code of Canon Law states:"Abstinence from eating meat or another food according to the prescriptions of the conference of bishops is to be observed on Fridays throughout the year unless they are solemnities; abstinence and fast are to be observed on Ash Wednesday and on the Friday of the Passion and Death of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Who is bound to abstain?All Catholics age 14 and older are bound by the law of abstinence.

Canon 1252 of the Code of Canon Law states:"All persons who have completed their fourteenth year are bound by the law of abstinence; all adults are bound by the law of fast up to the beginning of their sixtieth year. Nevertheless, pastors and parents are to see to it that minors who are not bound by the law of fast and abstinence are educated in an authentic sense of penance."

Fasting

What is fasting?Fasting is the discipline of limiting oneself to a single meal per day. One is permitted to take up to two additional small meals in order to maintain strength, that together would not equal a full meal.

When must I fast?There are two prescribed days of fasting: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.

Who must fast?All Catholic adults age 18-60 are bound to fast.If your health is such that fasting would be harmful to you, you are not obliged to fast.

While the laws of fasting and abstinence above are fairly specific and must be followed, in addition to these required disciplines it is a good idea to fast and abstain from other things in order to become more focused on Christ, and to deepen one's spiritual life.

Some ideas for fasting/abstinence:- Digital Fast: Try fasting or abstaining from unnecessary use of video games, TV, internet, computer, tablet, cell-phone, etc... replacing these activities with spiritually beneficial ones.- Food/Drink: Try fasting a few times per week, abstaining from meat more than required, abstaining from foods or drinks you like (e.g. dessert, alcohol, junk food etc...)- Bad habits: Try fasting from bad habits or vices like sexual impurity, pornography, sedentary lifestyle, swearing, being uncharitable to others, gossip, etc... The idea here is to fast from these things, and then to NEVER take them up again. Take off the mantle of vice and put on the mantle of virtue.- Sleep: If you don't have a very good habit of waking up early, or you tend to go to bed too late, try disciplining yourself and going to bed early and waking up early in order to pray.

Penance

What is penance?Penance can be put into two categories, according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

"Interior penance: a conversion of heart toward God and away from sin, which implies the intention to change one's life because of hope in divine mercy (CCC 1431).External acts of penance: include fasting, prayer, and almsgiving (CCC 1434). The observance of certain penitential practices is obliged by the fourth precept of the Church (CCC 2043)."

Fasting: see above

Prayer: Spend more time in prayer this Lent. Go to daily Mass one or two times per week. Substitute certain pleasures like TV, video games, etc... with prayer or spiritual reading. Learn how to be a better disciple and fall more deeply in love with God.

Some good prayer ideas:- Rosary- Stations of the Cross- Daily Mass- Adoration- Chaplet of Divine Mercy- Spiritual Reading (i.e. good books by authors like St. Francis de Sales, Pope St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict, St. Ignatius etc...)- Scripture Reading, Lectio Divina- Silent meditation on the mysteries of the FaithAlmsgiving: This is the practice of giving one's time, talents, and treasure for the good of the poor. The requires sacrifice. This doesn't mean that you should not buy anything or that you should be a pauper yourself, but giving a little more can be a good thing. It reminds us of our dependence on God and that our money is ultimately not ours, but his; we are bust stewards. All comes from God and goes back to him.

Here are some good almsgiving ideas:- Increase your offering to the Church- Use the Rice Bowl from Catholic Relief Services to put aside extra change for the poor- Give to a local charity- Volunteer at Hands Across the Table, or better yet, EAT with the poor at Hands Across the Table- When you go to buy something, look at the item you like most, and can afford, and chose the next best/cheapest one. Take the money you saved, and give it to the poor.

Penance is what Lent is all about. It is meant to direct our hearts away from sin and those things that distract us from God, and back to God. By depriving ourselves of certain things, and leading disciplined and virtuous lives, we open ourselves up to more grace and more love. We also become better instruments of love, and ambassadors for Christ. Penance is all about becoming a better, more intentional DISCIPLE!

Easter Communion

The Third Precept of the Church, commonly called the "Easter Duty" can be found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2042. ALL Catholics, are bound to receive the Eucharist at least once per year during the Easter season. This presumes the Second Precept of the Church, "You shall confess your sins at least once a year." GO TO CONFESSION and then GO TO COMMUNION!!!

The time for fulfilling the "Easter Duty" begins on the First Sunday of Lent (February 22, 2015) and ends on Trinity Sunday (May 31, 2015).